At Outdoor Research, Giving Tuesday is an opportunity to align with partners who are making a meaningful impact in their communities. This year, we are proud to donate 3% of our online sales to support the Carolina Climbers Coalition (CCC) and their critical efforts to recover from the devastating effects of Hurricane Helene. As climbers and lovers of the outdoors, we understand that access to natural spaces fosters mental resilience and community connection and stimulates local economies. Through the CCC’s Hurricane Helene C4 Program, we’re helping to restore access to cherished climbing areas while supporting local community members most affected by the storm. From Carolina Climbers Coalition:The path of Hurricane Helene had a profound effect on people's lives, homes, employment, infrastructure, and businesses in many of the communities we serve. The power of the storm also had a disastrous effect on several of our climbing access areas. Landslides, structural damage, and hundreds, if not thousands of downed trees block safe passage to many of our beloved climbing areas. Simultaneously, several individuals within our outdoor recreation community in the region find themselves without employment due to Helene. In response, CCC is proud to announce our 'Hurricane Helene C4 Program', a roughly two-month program designed to combat loss of income for a few community members while rehabilitating our most affected climbing areas. Our C4 program (Carolina Climbing Conservation Corps) was founded during COVID-19 layoffs with a similar purpose: to provide employment to out-of-work individuals who were able to perform trail-building tasks at various locations in the Carolinas. As of Nov 1st, we have hired three C4 employees for at least two months.Their goal is to open and maintain public access areas affected by Helene. With your continued support, we could expand the C4 Helene program for a longer duration and with more employees! In the aftermath of this storm, focusing on trail and climbing access may not seem like a dire need. However, our climbing lands provide sanctuary and mental respite for so many at a time when that is so needed. The few areas in the region that are now accessible will be getting more visitation due to the closure of dozens of our outdoor climbing areas and climbing gyms. The inability to access recreational lands also has ripple effects on the economy of the regions near the climbing areas we serve. The more we open up, the more we work together to combat the ripple effects of Hurricane Helene. The more out-of-work people we can employ in our community, the more our community can get back on its feet If you are interested in helping, please donate here. If you are interested in 'on the ground help', please stay posted on our public events page here.
